clair055

My niece and sister sent this link to me the other day. It is an obituary for the grandparent of one of my niece’s friends. This line caught my eye: [Mr.] Max [Howard Medert] was a WWII Army veteran who proudly served as one of “Merrill’s Marauders” in China, Burma and India. Following his military career, he served on the city of Atlanta Police Force , retiring after 25 years of service. Now, just the fact that Mr. Medert had 25 years of service with the Atlanta Police Force is commendable, but he also was a member of Merrill’s Marauders in China, Burma and India. Wow! What? You don’t know about Merrill’s Marauders? I’m not surprised. You see, the China-India-Burma theater of war during World War II is basically forgotten by the history books mainly because it did not follow the standard American command structure, but it is key in studying the push toward VJ Day and in realizing some of the roots of today’s modern army. It was during their Quebec meeting in August, 1943 when Preside...

When I was growing up the words said at bed time included ‘good night’ and ‘I love you’ along with the phrase ‘Tie-Tie’ and ‘Sleep tight, don’t let the bed bugs bite” ‘Tie-Tie’ came from me because as a little girl I couldn’t pronounce the words ‘night-night’…..all that came out was ‘Tie-Tie ‘and the phrase entered our family lexicon. If I said ‘Tie-Tie’ to my father or my sister they would know exactly what I meant. But what about that “sleep tight” thing? Where does that come from? Recently I posted a picture of a rope tightening key for Wordless Wednesday . The key was used to tighten rope mattresses common in colonial and post-colonial America. Here’s a video showing how the key was used to tighten the bed ropes. When you tour old colonial locations docents love to share with you the phrase “Sleep tight” came from the fact that you would want the ropes tight in order to get a good night’s sleep. It does make sense, doesn’t it? But upon closer study there is no definitive proof the ...

Yes, I know this is a piano, but look at the two china looking objects on top of the piano...... What are they????? What are they used for???? Here’s a hint….Something was placed in them as people walked by. Other bloggers post wordless images on Wednesday , too. Visit the main page HERE to find them.

Hmmmm….Why is that hunk of wood placed next to the bed? What is it for? Other bloggers post wordless images on Wednesday , too. Visit the main page HERE to find them. Last week's mystery explanation can be found here. Also YOU can become a fan of History Is Elementary on Facebook. Click the “like” button over in the right sidebar.

At some point in every young girl’s life she realizes the importance of silver. Perhaps it is when she has a female relative who is getting married, and she overhears other female relatives and friends inquiring about the silver pattern she has registered for. Perhaps it is when she is old enough…..finally……to attend a wedding or baby shower with her mother and sees the array of silver trays, silver flatware, and silver coffee and tea services on display making the perfect refreshment table. In my case…….it was when I was old enough to help my grandmother prepare the dining table for a family dinner…..more than likely Thanksgiving or Christmas. I can remember going to the drawer in the kitchen where the knives and forks were stored. My grandmother shooed me away and directed me in that constantly out-of-breath tone she had, “No, no…..go in the dining room and get the forks out of the box.” The box? As I walked into the dining room I thought, “What box? Then I saw the box where she had ...

I have several things I want to share this morning, so……….hang on. First is The Journal of the Gilded Age and Progressive Era …….it’s published quarterly and the website advises each issue is packed with original essays, including on-line projects and reviews of scholarly books. The focus, of course, is all aspects of U.S. History from 1865-1920. I have a few articles here at History Is Elementary regarding the Gilded Age. You can access all of them here …..Just scroll through to find them all.   Then there’s the website, Mission U.S. This is a site for for older elementary and middle school students and provides an innovative way for sharing social studies content. The first game, “For Crown or Colony?” has already launched. The setting for the game is Boston in 1770 and students actually role-play taking on the identity of a publisher’s apprentice. Students will interact with such real figures in history as Phillis Wheatley and Paul Revere. I've included an image from the game b...

I’m not happy with Congress these days…..I don’t know many of my fellow Americans that are. My title says it all. They play using my tax dollars as their kick balls and monkey bars. However, before I go off on a rant that would cause my blood pressure to rise I want to go in a different direction with children….in particular “little boys.” The other day I posted a drawing as one of my mystery images for Wordless Wednesday .   I’ve reposted it below: The setting for the drawing is the United States Senate Chambers and the event being portrayed is the impeachment proceedings for President Andrew Johnson. The drawing was included in a book titled The Story of a Great Nation (1886) by   John Gilmary Shea a writer, historian, and editor. You can read my background article here regarding President Johnson’s impeachment over at American Presidents Blog . I included this drawing on my Facebook profile and the page I have there for History Is Elementary . One of my visitors there…..my...